I can’t believe we’ve been wearing masks for almost five months! Recently, my son (5) and I started wearing mask chains and they’re so convenient! If we want to take a drink, we don’t need to look for a spot to place the mask. I think having a mask chain will be especially important for back to school (if that even happens).

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A couple of things to keep in mind — most chains don’t have a breakaway clasp, so if the chain gets caught on the playground, it can create a choking hazard. I make sure to have my eyes on my son whenever he runs around wearing a mask chain or lanyard. Also, wearing a mask on a chain isn’t necessarily sanitary — if your child has the mask hanging from their neck and it rubs against their shirt or they crawl on the floor and it drags, it could get germy. I still think it’s better than risking it falling off entirely or your child placing it on an unsanitary surface when taking it off to eat or drink.

I tried to break these down by shop to make it easier for you to reach shipping thresholds.

Also check out my roundup of recommended masks and my long-wearing lipstick that won’t transfer to your mask!

DIY Mask Making Kits

I ordered the components for this mask chain and then recommended to the seller that they sell it as a kit, which he did and it’s only $4.50+ shipping! Making the mask chain with my five year old son was a fun activity (great for fine motor skills). The shop sells two versions. I have both but am including only the better one (the links on the other one slip apart too easily). It comes with a flower charm, but you can buy other charms from the seller. I and my five year old both wear this mask (it’s a cutesy look). Note that this ships from Korea but mine arrived in under a week.

While ordering the DIY mask chain, I ordered all of these items from the same shop (I ended up spending enough for free shipping) and my son and I have been having fun making bracelets. Note that the circular jump rings are for attaching pendants / charms to the plastic links and we got each of the plastic link types in multiple colors.

Lucky Planet US

I bought a few chains from Lucky Planet’s shop (including the gummy bear and smiley plastic link chains) and they are great and very reasonably priced. I originally saw another shop advertising the gummy charm ones for almost double the price! My son loves his and recently gifted one to a friend who who loves it too. Depending on your style, these work for kids or adults!

Changles Bangles

These chains by my friend, Michel, are a bit of a step up and more expensive. Mine feels like jewelry to me, so I think the price is reasonable. The shop owner is a NYC area mom and personalized ours. I love that the clips are padded so they can be used for masks or sunglasses.